Department of Human Behavior, Ecology and Culture

Comparative Behavioral Ecology

Our group endeavors to understand to what extent humans are just like any other species in how we react to our environment. Some people argue that culture has allowed us to modify our environment so much that we are fundamentally different from other species. Others argue that other species have culture as well, and that the biological rules that shape the behavior of other species are still acting on humans. Our aim is to identify these rules in other species and determine whether they also apply to humans.

Research Questions

Why do individuals differ in behavior?To answer this question, we investigate variation in the...

Objective

Behavior is one way individuals can respond to challenges in their environment. The objective of our research group is to investigate the microevolution of behavior and culture in an ecological context.

We are interested in the cognitive mechanisms and environmental features that underly behavioral adaptations, which can lead to evolutionarily novel forms of behavior and societies.

As behavioral ecologists, we investigate all aspects of explaining animal behavior including: how internal factors such as immunity and hormones interact with behavior, how development shapes the range of behaviors expressed, whether differences in behavior are linked with reproductive success, and how previous adaptations constrain the evolution of behavior.

Research Staff

Doctoral Students

Interested in joining our group?

We are interested in growing a diverse group of researchers working in Comparative Behavioral Ecology. We realize that opportunities and career progression are not equally available to all. Therefore, we aim to assess people based on what they have done with the opportunities they have been given. We signed DORA, which means that we will not use metrics to select researchers, but rather assess research quality directly and consider all types of research outputs. Please contact either Dieter or Corina to discuss research interest overlap. If it seems like a mutually good fit, and if you are contributing to changing academia to make it more inclusive for groups that are traditionally underrepresented in the sciences, then…

Potential undergraduate research assistants: we are limited in the opportunities we can offer, but it might be possible if your participation in our research could count toward your degree requirements in Leipzig, Germany or in Tempe, Arizona USA. Alternatively, if you are not local and you would like to be a visiting researcher, you would need to acquire external funding to support your work on a specific project.

Potential PhD students who have a Masters Degree can apply through the International Max Planck Research School (IMPRS): the Leipzig School of Human Origins. Opportunities are limited, so please contact us before applying.

Open research pledge

We aim to make all of our research processes and products freely available to everyone as much as possible (noting that in some instances information might be protected or not ours to share). We are actively working to change academic culture to improve research quality through our participation in #BulliedIntoBadScience and in collaboration with the Max Planck Digital Library in creating workflows for verifiable research (blog post).

Code of conduct

All members of the lab, along with visitors, are expected to agree with and abide by the following code of conduct. We will enforce this code as needed. We expect cooperation from all members to help ensure a safe and welcoming environment for everybody. Your health and safety, and that of everyone around you and our research subjects, is more important than our research.

The Quick Version

The lab is dedicated to providing a harassment-free and welcoming experience for everyone, regardless of gender, gender identity and expression, age, sexual orientation, disability, physical appearance, body size, race, religion (or lack thereof), or species. We do not tolerate harassment of lab members in any form. Sexual language and imagery is generally not appropriate for any lab venue, including lab meetings, presentations, or discussions. (However, do note that we work on biological matters so work-related discussions of e.g., animal reproduction are appropriate.) We value individual differences and strive to create a welcoming environment for lab members.

The Less Quick Version

We expect all members of the lab to behave according to these rules and all relevant protocols and guidelines.

We realize that people come from all over the world to work on research projects in our lab, and we strive to make everyone feel welcome. For example, English may not be the native language of many lab members; therefore, we will take the time to go slowly and prioritize understanding over speed or convenience. As well, many lab members are multi-lingual, which can help facilitate communication.

We expect members to follow these guidelines at any lab-related event.